The Malacca Islamic Religious Council (Maim) would be keeping a close watch on a woman who was freed from a faith rehabilitation centre yesterday.

The woman - Siti Fatimah Abdul Karim according to her identity card, but prefers to be known as M Revathi - had initially applied to the Malacca Syariah High Court in January to declare herself as a Hindu, but was detained at the centre for 280 days instead.

Freed yesterday - two days earlier than her scheduled stint - Revathi was ordered to stay with her Muslim parents and was not allowed to convert out of Islam by the same court.

Speaking to reporters today, lawyer Tuah Atan who represented Maim at the proceedings yesterday said Maim did not recognise Revathi's marriage to V Suresh, who is a Hindu.

The couple underwent a wedding in 2004 according to Hindu rites but the marriage was never officially recorded. The couple has a 18-month-old daughter which the Malacca Syariah High Court has placed under the custody of Revathi's Muslim parents.

The lawyer confirmed that action could still be taken on Revathi, 29, if she is found to be living with Suresh, 29, a bus driver. Khalwat (close proximity) is a punishable crime under Syariah law.

Tuah said Maim would "make sure" that the woman attends weekly counselling sessions, but did not elaborate.

"If our brothers or sisters (in Islam) go astray, we would give them an avenue to pulih (be rehabilitated)," he said.

To a question, Tuah said the woman would only be given custody of her daughter once she had been "rehabilitated".

Syariah style custody

Tuah was met at the Shah Alam High Court where a habeas corpus hearing filed by Suresh against the Selangor Islamic Religious Counil (Mais) over the women's initial detention was supposed to be heard.

Counsel for Mais Mohamad Haniff Khatri Abdulla when approached confirmed that the woman's daughter was indeed a Muslim.

"If any party are not happy with the decisions, there are recourse in the Syariah Courts," he added.

On the jurisdiction of the Syariah Court to impose custody of an adult to their parents, Mohamad Haniff said it was allowed, but not through a secular concept of granting custody of a minor.

"The Syariah Courts or authorities have the power to put sentences or detain (someone) in lieu of further sentences to the preservation of the Islamic faith under the jurisprudence of Islam which is protected by the Federal Constitution.

"It is within the rights (of the Syariah Courts) to apply the Islamic jurisprudence with regards to custody and care of a person who claims to want to apostatise back to the custody of their parents, even if the person concerned is 45 or 47," he said.